Deacon Luis Trucios, who ministered at Our Lady of the Rosary Parish in Union City, died Jan. 5 following a brief illness. He was 80.

He was born in Cajatambo, a small town up in the Andes Mountains in Peru. He was the youngest of five brothers and one sister. Both of his parents died before he was five years old. His brothers went to Lima in search of work. Later he followed them there.

Because the family house was crowded, young Trucios did his school work in the city parks. In one of these parks he met Virginia, who would become his wife in 1958. Eleven months after their wedding, they became parents to son, Luis Jr.

The young family struggled during difficult economic conditions in Peru. He accepted an offer from a relative in the U.S. to join him. After finding employment as a dishwasher, then as a janitor, he sent for his wife and son. While living in Los Angeles in the early 1960s, the Trucios welcomed a daughter, Vicky. Taking the advice of another relative, Trucios moved his family to the San Francisco Bay Area.

A hard and industrious worker, Luis Trucios was never without work. He was a sous chef in San Mateo's famed Shadows restaurant, worked in a chocolate factory, and in the public works department for the city of Menlo Park; for a time owned his own janitorial business before eventually becoming a Realtor.

Life changed for Luis Trucios when he took a Cursillo retreat years ago, which led him to devote more of his life to serving God. After becoming involved in the small Christian communities in the church he entered the long formation process to become a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Oakland. He was ordained by Bishop John Cummins in 1995.

Deacon Trucios preached the Word of God and served his God and community for decades. He worked in the Kairos prison ministry and was a chaplain at Washington and Highland hospitals. As a man of faith he helped people whether they needed counseling or a hot meal.

"He was very well loved by everybody" in the parish, said Robert Clark, business manager at Our Lady of the Rosary Parish.

Personally Clark said that he was amazed by the great faith Trucios displayed as his health was failing. He was "willing to accept" peacefully whatever happened. "His faith was strong," Clark said.

He is survived by his wife, Virginia, daughter Vicky and granddaughter Lydia Vasquez of Hayward; son, Luis Jr., and his son's wife, Whitney, and two grandsons, Sebastian and Gabriel of Redwood City; and his brothers Armando of Novato and Alejandro of Lima.

The funeral was held Jan. 14 at Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Union City.